Cobra Men's Tennis Looking for Conference Tourney Title

Apr 18, 2013

HARTSVILLE, S.C. – The Coker men's tennis team has a chance to add some more hardware to its trophy case this weekend at the 2013 Conference Carolinas men's tennis tournament in Sumter, S.C. The top-seeded Cobras will take on the No. 8 seed Barton College in a quarterfinals match on Friday (Apr. 19).

The Cobras enter the match as the Conference Carolinas regular season champions. They went 10-0 during league play this season and were 16-4 overall, and currently the Cobras are ranked No. 6 in the NCAA Southeast Region. The men have won 14 of their last 16 matches, including winning the last seven straight to finish the regular season. Their only two losses during that stretch were to Division I opponents Presbyterian College and The Citadel.

A young team, the Cobras have just one junior, one sophomore and four freshmen that make-up the lineup. Freshman Andre Staab leads the way as Coker's first ever regionally ranked player. He is ranked No. 12 in the Southeast region according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA). Staab has posted a singles record of 15-5 overall and 8-2 against conference opponents at the No. 1 position. Also leading the team both on and off the court is James Corfield. The junior has earned a 6-3 overall record at No. 4 singles and is a perfect 10-0 against league competition. Freshmen Tom Sizeland, William Marrafao and Martin Moncayo, along with sophomore George Handy, have all had solid seasons as well. Sizeland and Marrafao are 14-5 overall at No. 2 and No. 3 singles, while Moncayo is 14-4 at No. 6 and Handy is 7-12 at the No. 5 spot.

Barton (5-12, 3-7 Conf. Carolinas) enters the match having lost their last four consecutive matches. Rafael Ruiz Velasco leads the Bulldogs with a 10-7 overall record at the No. 1 position. Coker defeated Barton 6-3 in their first meeting of the season back on Mar. 4.

The Cobras and the Bulldogs will square off at 9 a.m. at the Palmetto Tennis Center. The winner will advance to play in the semifinals on Saturday (Apr. 20) against the winner of the match between the No. 4 seed Pfeiffer and the No. 5 seed Queens.